The typical securities or commodities broker spends a considerable amount of time on the phone each day quoting current prices to customers. Brokers generally encourage client inquiries of this nature in order to develop a rapport with clients through which they keep appraised of their client's current interests in the market. By the same token customers of brokerage houses expect their broker to be available to supply desired quotations, and are generally appreciative of the service.
While the manual dissemination of quotations as described above is generally satisfactory, there are many instances where the broker would just as soon not be bothered, or the customer would just as soon not bother the broker. Nevertheless, the broker still desires to keep close tabs on his client's interests, many times from hour to hour and even minute to minute. And, customers still desire up-to-the-minute quotations notwithstanding their reluctance to pester the broker.
Often times, the customer requests that when a security reaches a specified price the broker should notify the customer or should buy or sell the security for the customer. Thus, a broker is often left the undesirable task of tracking prices for a number of securities and notifying customers and/or executing trades when "trigger" levels are reached. Obviously, the fast moving nature of the market and the dynamic nature of the customer requests make this a difficult and time consuming task.
In response to the above-described situations, the present invention provides an automatic computer controlled quotation system whereby quotations are disseminated to customers in computer synthesized speech and whereby customer inquiries may be monitored by the broker on an ongoing basis if desired. In addition, the present invention provides that securities prices may be monitored and reported to customers when they reach a predetermined price.